1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to brackets, and more particularly, to brackets of a type which are designed to connect a structure to a vehicle floor. More specifically, the present invention is concerned with brackets of a type which pivotally connect a front leg of a foldable seat to a vehicle floor which is covered with a rug.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In order to clarify the task of the present invention, one conventional bracket of the above-mentioned type will be described with reference to FIG. 5 of the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 5 illustrates the prior art. A floor has a raised surface portion with an inclined wall portion (no numeral). The vehicle floor 1 is covered with a rug 1a. A mounting zone 2 to which the bracket 4 is to be secured is shown. The mounting zone 2 is a portion 3 of the inclined wall portion which is exposed to the outside through a rectangular opening (no numeral) formed through the rug 1a. The portion 3 has two bolt openings (no numerals).
The bracket 4 pivotally holds a front leg 9 of a foldable seat mounted on the raised surface portion of the vehicle floor 1. (This arrangement will be understood from FIG. 3). The bracket 4 comprises a generally rectangular base portion 5 and a generally rectangular raised portion 6. The base portion 5 has side walls (no numerals) for stably receiving a lower portion of the front leg 9 when the seat assumes a normal operative position. (This will be understood when viewing FIG. 3.) The raised portion 6 is shaped to match the rectangular opening of the rug 1a. The raised portion 6 has two bolt openings (no numerals).
Upon assembly, the bracket 4 is placed on the mounting zone 2 having the raised portion 6 neatly inserted into the rectangular opening of the rug 1a, and two bolts 8 are inserted into aligned bolt openings and fastened with the aid of nuts (not shown) welded to the back surface of the inclined wall portion. The base portion 7 of the bracket 4 presses a peripheral portion of the rectangular opening of the rug la against the inclined wall portion of the floor 1.
However, due to its inherent construction, the bracket 4 has the following drawbacks.
First, when an external force is suddenly applied to, the rug 1a near the bracket 4 due to for example, rushed ingress of a passenger, the peripheral portion of the opening of the rug 1a tends to slip out of place causing exposure of an unsightly cut edge of the rug 1a to the outside. This detracts from the external appearance of the vehicle floor.
Second, since any load applied to the front leg 9 of the seat is received by only the exposed portion of the vehicle floor to which the raised portion 6 of the bracket 4 contacts, it becomes necessary to reinforce the vehicle floor, particularly, at the exposed portion 3. This not only increases the weight of the vehicle but also increases the production cost.